New Jersey- from www.philly.com- In a controversial sex-tourism case, a federal judge yesterday sentenced Anthony Mark Bianchi of North Wildwood to 25 years in federal detention for traveling to Eastern Europe to molest teenage boys.
U.S. District Judge Bruce W. Kauffman imposed the sentence, which was close to the maximum suggested by advisory sentencing guidelines, after a proceeding that lasted more than four hours.
"The 25-year sentence sends a pretty clear message that it's not acceptable for American citizens to travel abroad to have sex with children," said U.S. Attorney Michael Levy, who led the prosecution. "There used to be this attitude that because they took their dirty business elsewhere, it's not our problem. It's our problem."
Levy said that Bianchi showed no remorse and was likely to commit the crime again.
Bianchi, 46, was found guilty in 2007 of three counts of assaulting three boys and attempting to molest two others in Romania and Moldova. Some of the victims came from Eastern Europe to testify at his trial.
He was convicted under a 2003 federal law that makes it illegal for U.S. citizens to commit sexual crimes against children in foreign countries. The law is controversial because it allows federal authorities to prosecute Americans for acts committed on foreign soil.
Defense attorney Eugene P. Harris pointed to that law as he tried to persuade Kauffman to sentence Bianchi - who had been arrested in 2000 in Moscow for molesting three boys, ages 10, 12, and 13 - to no more than eight years in prison.
"We were disappointed," Harris said after the sentencing. "We had hoped for something lesser, but we will go forward with the appeal."
Bianchi did not testify during the proceeding.
Bianchi stood motionless in a green jumpsuit as Kauffman read the sentence, which includes lifetime supervision after the 25 years are served. His mother, who was in the courtroom, cried as it was announced, and the two whispered "I love you" to each other before Bianchi was ushered out of the courtroom.
